Gulfport native sets American long-jump record

United States' Brittney Reese makes an attempt in the Women's Long Jump final during the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, March 11, 2012. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

Gulfport, Mississippi, native and former Ole Miss standout Brittney Reese set a long-jump world record, breaking Jackie Joyner-Kersee's 18-year-old American record by four inches.

ISTANBUL -- When
Aries Merritt shot out of the blocks to deny Liu Xiang victory in the
60-meter hurdles, he clinched more than just an unlikely victory.

The
American hurdler, who was thought to have little chance against the
Chinese great, won the title and cemented a record gold medal haul for
the U.S. team at the world indoor championships.

"We psyched up
everybody, including myself," said U.S. captain Bernard Lagat, who won
his own gold in the 3,000. "We came together as a team."

It bodes well for a great show at the London Olympics. No other country had more than two golds.

Lagat
was a prime example. At 37, he had a devastating kick to shake off two
younger Kenyans over the final lap to defend his 3,000 title.

Starting
Friday morning, Ashton Eaton began building on his heptathlon world
record and shot putter Ryan Whiting clinched the first gold later that
day. The Americans were already on a roll.

"We always come to
these meets saying, 'USA is the best team in the world,'" said Christian
Taylor, who took silver behind teammate Will Claye in Sunday's triple
jump. "You just keep that mindset and you want to do your part also."

While Lagat won yet another gold in the twilight of his career, Claye is only 20 years old.

"It's going to be tough to make the U.S. team" for the London Games, Claye said.

The
10 golds at the Atakoy Arena were two better than the previous record.
And several times, the toughest competition an American faced was
another American.

In the women's long jump, Brittney Reese, a Gulfport, Mississippi, native and former Ole Miss star,
jumped a championship record 23 feet, 8¾ inches on her last attempt to
push American teammate Janay Deloach to silver at 22-10¾ and become the
first back-to-back winner in the event.

Reese's jump broke Jackie Joyner-Kersee's 18-year-old American record by four inches.

"I am blessed to become the first woman to win back-to-back indoor
titles, plus the American and the Championships record," Reese told
reporters after her winning jump. "Istanbul will be a special place in
my career, and I will now go for the Olympic gold, the only major title
missing in my career."

Reese moves to No. 3 on the all-time world list and records the farthest jump in the world since 1989.

She will be the favorite to win Olympic gold at the 2012 London Games this summer.

Reese said she was driven by a new motto that might well apply to all Americans at the championships.

"My coach came up with this idea of, 'See it. Feel it. Trust it,' and that is what I have been trying to come out and do," Reese said.

As
captain, Lagat came up with a stirring speech before the championships,
telling his teammates to "run as hard as you can, jump as high as you
can. Jump, pole vault. Because, you know what, this is the time. There's
no other time."

Lagat won his third title by breaking free with
100 meters to go to beat Kenyan rivals Augustine Choge and Edwin Soi. Mo
Farah was the favorite, but he finished fourth. The Briton beat Lagat
in a stirring 5,000 finish at the world outdoor championships in August.

Lagat
knew the Kenyans would set the pace, so he didn't fall back and risk
being surprised by a sudden breakaway. When the final surge came, he was
prepared.

Lagat said he thought to himself: "I am going to stay here because those guys are strong."

Merritt
set the pace in his final. Fastest out of the blocks, he even got the
better of Liu, the 2004 Olympic champion who was trying out a new start
with one step less to the first hurdle to keep the opposition at bay.

When Liu saw the blur of Merritt, it immediately unsettled him.

"I knew Aries Merritt is a fast starter," Liu said. "So I got out in a rush and was not able to control my technique."

The meet could have been even better for the Americans.

The
women's 4x400 relay produced the most exciting finish of the
championships when 400 champion Sanya Richards-Ross came back from
fourth place with 200 meters to go and missed gold by just .01 seconds
when Perri Shakes-Drayton of Britain threw herself across the line
first.

The men's 4x400 team crossed the line first, but the gold
was delayed for two hours after a British protest over a handover
technicality first led to disqualification before the gold was
reinstated on appeal.

On a big day for the Americans, Russia's
Yelena Isinbayeva also made a statement. She ended a three-year gold
medal drought by winning the pole vault with just two jumps.

Isinbayeva
set a world record of 16 feet, 5¼ inches last month and failed to
improve that after clinching gold. It was Isinbayeva's fourth indoor
world title but her first in four years. Over the same period, she also
lost her world outdoor title.

"I was waiting for this victory like
a mother is waiting to give birth to her baby," Isinbayeva said. "The
last three years showed me how important it is for me to win."